Pope appoints 18 new cardinals

11 from outside Europe, 16 cardinal electors

(ANSA) - Vatican City, February 22 - Pope Francis appointed
18 new cardinals at a ceremony in the Vatican Saturday, topping
up the elite group that will be tasked with leading a Church he
is trying to change and electing his successor as leader of the
world's 1.2 billion Catholics.

It was the first consistory of Francis's papacy, which began
in March, a month after the shock resignation of Benedict XVI.

Handing them their red caps, signifying their willingness to
die for the Catholic Church, Francis told the new cardinals "the
Church needs your courage".

He urged the new 'princes of the Church' to "spread the
Gospel on every occasion, opportune and not opportune".

The Church needs "your compassion especially in this moment
of pain and suffering in so many countries in the world,"
Francis said, adding the new cardinals should be "artisans of
peace".

Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, one of the new
cardinals, said "being disciples of Jesus is embarking on an
adventure without measure...that may demand the gift of one's
life, as has happened for many Christians around the world".
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI joined Francis - the first time
two popes have been present at a public ceremony in St Peter's.

Francis walked down the nave to embrace his predecessor, who
last February became the first pope in 700 years to abdicate.

Francis was to have named 19 cardinals but one, 98-year-old
Monsignor Loris Capovilla, former secretary to the late pope
John XXIII, was absent because of age-related frailty.

The new cardinals - 11 of them from outside Europe - have
been touted as boosting Francis' reform drive by sharing
decision-making in the Church.

The pope is urging bishops and cardinals to help him shape
new policies.
The inclusion of clerics from poor countries like Haiti and
Burkina Faso have been seen as reflecting the Argentine pope's
concern for the most needy and those left behind by global
capitalism.

Sixteen of the new 'princes of the Church' are under 80,
making them cardinal electors eligible to enter a conclave to
elect the pope's successor.

The consistory is partly seen as an attempt to reflect
the Catholic Church's increasing international make-up at its
highest echelons. The bulk of new priests and nuns are from
South American, African and other Third World countries which
are still under-represented at the top levels.

The cardinals come from 12 countries.
In Europe, Spain, Italy, Germany and England are
represented, including the leader of the Catholic church in
England and Wales, Archbishop Vincent Nichols.
Five are from Latin America and the Caribbean.
With Saturday's appointments the College of Cardinals now
has 218 cardinals, of whom 122 are under age 80.
The cardinals have been meeting in plenary session to
discuss family issues for the past two days.

Rome's bespoke religious tailors have been working overtime
since last month to kit out the cardinals in their red regalia.

Francis's first consistory was held on the feast of the
Chair of St. Peter, a relic kept in St. Peter's Basilica and
believed to have been the throne he used.